He’d stopped showering,eating and leaving his room. He was seen staring into his cell bathroom in Villawood Immigration Detention Centre. It was in that cell where he was found hanging on January 25,2019,and pronounced dead shortly after.
Moses Kellie in 2009.Supplied
These eyewitness accounts were provided by detainees,guards and healthcare staff during hearings of a four-week coronial inquest into the deaths of Kellie and two other detainees – Muhammad Hafizuddin Bin Zaini,26,and mother-of-two Leah Porter – in Villawood between 2019 and 2022.
The inquest in front of NSW Deputy State Coroner Elizabeth Ryan concluded this week and scrutinises the adequacy of mental healthcare in the centres,particularly for people at risk of self-harm and suicide.
The inquest heard concerns about the adequacy of health services – particularly mental health – staffing,training and the broader welfare of detainees often held for years. The evidence sparked fresh condemnation and calls for a public inquiry into the system.
Observers predict the case could pave the way for substantial reform. The federal government may overhaul the way healthcare is managed in the centres even before Ryan issues her findings. During the inquest,an Australian Border Force official disclosed the government was already running a procurement process for healthcare services inside the centres.
Two companies – International Health and Medical Services (IHMS) and Serco – have retained contracts to manage the welfare,security and healthcare services for detainees across the network for more than a decade. Both contracts expire next year.
The Department of Home Affairs declined to comment about the tender process citing probity requirements.
However,one source,who could not be named to discuss sensitive information,said the department was looking for companies that could treat detainees outside the centre in facilities such as aged care,palliative care or other supported living environments.
The source said the department was looking for companies that could support people with complex and chronic conditions and provide care on an individual and 24-hour basis,using a combination of telehealth and expanded clinic hours.
Deng Adut has lost faith in the justice system. Michele Mossop
Former NSW Australian of the Year and criminal lawyer,who represented Kellie’s family during the inquest,said both companies had committed to overhauling their policies after Kellie’s death to prevent the same mistakes from occurring during the hearings.
“To be honest with you,it’s been painful for me. They are actually speaking about the policies they’ve changed so his death is not in vain,” Adut says. “But no one has lost their job. They’re making more money.”
For Adut,the delays in the inquest being heard – almost four years after Kellie’s death – have caused him to lose faith in the justice system and this will be his last case,as he takes a break from practising after 13 years.
Adut blames the government for Moses’ death,and believes the was a contributing factor.
“Moses was Australia’s Emmett Till,” Adut says,referencing a young African American boy became a flashpoint in the civil rights movement. “[Kellie] was tortured,then lynched,by the Australian government. The cruelty that is always inflicted on Africans,it is unacceptable,the way we are viewed.”
Former Manus Island detainee,author and rights advocate Behrouz Boochani is calling for a royal commission into Australia’s immigration detention network,which has support from the Greens and independent politicians Kylea Tink,Zoe Daniel and Andrew Wilkie.
Boochani knows the major parties are unlikely to support such a review,but will continue to push for a comprehensive investigation into all deaths in immigration detention – not just in the centres,but in the community or after deportation.
“We know people who have been deported to Syria,Iraq,they have been injured or killed,” he says. “That is not part of the detention so that’s why the media don’t pay attention. Many people have been killed in the community as well because of their experience inside the detention centre.”
Behrouz Boochani in Melbourne on Wednesday calling for a royal commission into immigraiton detention.Jason South
Boochani echoed on torture,Alice Edwards,by saying private companies paid billions of taxpayer dollars to run the facilities need to be scrutinised.
“These companies have benefited from this system. IHMS is the heart of this systematic torture,” Boochani said.
“They don’t provide proper medical treatment. Many people have been killed because of medical neglect. Many people have become addicted to drugs,mental pills. They cannot provide medical treatment. A company like IHMS is always the winner,how is that possible?”
Immigration Minister Andrew Giles and Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil declined to comment. Serco also declined to comment citing the ongoing case.
A recent investigation by this masthead revealed poor conditions inside Australia’s immigration detention centres,including,, and by at least one Serco official.
These reports were supported by evidence during the coronial hearings in Sydney,where multiple witnesses described an environment where guards were overworked and under-prepared.
One critical issue explored was non-compliance with medication requirements among detainees. The court heard detainees could not be forced to take their prescribed medication and that Serco guards were only in a position to encourage them to attend clinics to collect medicines,through education and engagement.
Multiple witnesses said a key barrier to ensuring compliance with medication was the opening hours of the clinic,which was closed during the weekends and at night,when most of the detainees were awake.
“They don’t not require health on weekends,” one nurse said. “It’s business as usual for detainees seven days a week.”
Staff and detainees described the drug ice being commonly used through the centre,by detainees using glass pipes in their bedrooms,and using points gained by completing activities to buy phone credit vouchers which could be exchanged for drugs.
The Australian Border Force says it “invests significant resources” to provide quality amenities to detainees.Wolter Peeters
“The place becomes alive,they party,they’re all bright and bushy-tailed,” said one nurse,adding a 24-hour clinic would create more opportunities for detainees to access healthcare.
The court heard activities offered inside the centres ranged from sports to Sudoku,Snakes and Ladders and puzzles,which could be used to gain points to buy cigarettes and other items from an internal store. The court also heard detainees wanted access to educational or vocational courses.
A Border Force spokesperson defended the quality of services available in immigration detention,saying the department “invests significant resources” to provide quality amenities and a broad range of health and welfare services and activities.
“The Department of Home Affairs and the ABF are committed to the welfare of detainees within Australia’s immigration detention network and take all reasonable steps to provide a safe environment to prevent injury and death in immigration detention facilities,” the department said.
Another key issue that was explored at the coronial inquest was the quality of observation of detainees who were at-risk of self-harm or suicide. The court heard Serco officers would perform routine “welfare checks” where they would check detainees twice daily,against a list of photographs.
For those assessed by medical staff to be at risk of suicide,the detainees would be placed on a psychological support program,which one health worker described as “suicide watch in layman’s terms”.
The court heard that officers undertake weeks-long training when they join the company and online module refreshers each year that include general information about mental health.
There was a degree of friendship described between the guards and detainees,including one guard who helped cut a ligature to save Kellie the first time he made an attempt on his life after entering Villawood.
“Initially,he was very angry with me for not letting him go,and then later he came and apologised and thanked me. And then after that,he used to come and just chat,just like any other detainee would,” said the guard.
For Adut and Boochani,the system needs an overhaul. “There is cruelty in the system. It’s unacceptable in my view,” Adut says.
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